NORWALK -- The local economy has become an issue in the Norwalk's 2015 mayoral race with Democratic Mayor Harry W. Rilling standing by his administration's newly minted action plan and Republican challenger Kelly L. Straniti focusing on weaknesses identified in the plan.

"When Mayor Rilling was campaigning for election in 2013 he declared that 'a two-year term for mayor isn't adequate and I would look at forming a commission within six months of taking office,'" Straniti wrote in a letter to the editor Monday. "Well, it is 22 months later and there's still no charter revision commission, largely because the mayor never made the case for it."

Proponents of four-year mayor terms maintain that two-year terms impede economic development by fostering uncertainty in the business community.

"Two-year Mayoral Terms" is identified as a "Weakness" in the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Threats section of the 24-page "Economic Development Action Plan" released by Rilling and other officials Sept. 2.

The action plan lays goals such as supporting established businesses and welcoming new businesses; leveraging Norwalk's cultural, recreational, art and historic assets as economic drivers; and maintaining and enhancing business areas and neighborhoods.

Redesigning the city's website and establishing a new "brand" for Norwalk are among the proposed actions spelled out in the action plan.

On Tuesday, Rilling and Economic Development Director Elizabeth Stocker announced the selection of Zunda Group, a SoNo-based design firm, to develop a marketing plan that will include a brand implementation program.

"We feel that Norwalk is moving again and that there's a lot of interest in investing in Norwalk through residential and commercial development," Rilling said. "There's a lot of things happening in Norwalk, so we want to make sure we have the right message, so people can truly understand what Norwalk has to offer. We have retained a local company to work with us to get that message out there."

Over the next month, Zunda Group will work with community and city representatives to "unearth, identify and define the key attributes that represent the City of Norwalk's brand essence through a series of interviews, in-depth research and a brand development workshop," according to Rilling's office.

The community is invited to share feedback about Norwalk by completing a voluntary public survey that will be available from Sept. 8 through Sept. 22 at www.norwalkct.org/survey.

Rilling said the marketing plan will capitalize on the city's urban core attractions such as The Maritime Aquarium at Norwalk and Stepping Stones Museum for Children, as well its beach, parks and natural resources and its location in lower Fairfield County.

"Just as importantly, we want to capitalize on our location," Rilling said. "We feel that Norwalk has become a destination."

In her letter, Straniti said she had fully reviewed the "Economic Development Action Plan" and "found it interesting that the analysis of current weaknesses in our city was placed at the back of the document, with no mention at all of why they haven't been remedied or even addressed in the last 22 months."

In addition to mayoral term lengths, Straniti promised to address two other weaknesses identified in the action plan: "Public Engagement" and "Infrastructure/Transportation."

In engaging the public on issues such as land-use proposals, Straniti said she will "call for and lead a process overhaul that would benefit the applicant, residents and all the commissions, boards, and agencies involved."

On infrastructure and transportation, Straniti cited her work as a councilwoman on fixing flooding problems. She challenged the Rilling administration on its stance on bicycle lanes.

"While bike lanes do offer a reasonable accommodation, permitting unsafe (for bicyclists and motorists) bike lanes on major roads that create a hazard for little or no benefit while making parking an issue is no way to improve transportation in Norwalk," Straniti wrote.

After taking office, Rilling formed the Norwalk Bike Walk Task Force with the goal of making streets and sidewalks safer for everyone, regardless of whether they're "in a car, on foot or on two wheels."

The "Economic Development Action Plan," another initiative of the Rilling administration, was put together by about 40 individuals from government, elected and appointed office, the business community and other stakeholders. Rilling last week described the plan as a "living, breathing document" that will be reviewed every six months to monitor progress on its goals.

Rilling said the city has already made progress on a number of the goals. He cited the groundbreaking on the Head-of-the-Harbor South redevelopment project and quality-of-life initiatives such as resumed street sweeping and litter cleanup in business areas of the city.